The Move

The move on the 16th January was quite bizarre because the access to both properties was difficult due to the recent heavy rains.

Two friends of ours from Guajar Alto – Antonio Campozo, with his Mercedes Sprinter van, and Mark Rosser turned up at our old house at 0800. The van became stuck below the house but Mark managed to pull it out with his pick-up truck. The next, larger van, which came from near our new location, turned up at 0930 and got stuck in the gate to our drive, but Mark came to the rescue again and was able to pull it through. When Antonio arrived at the new house, he attempted to cross the river, which was in flood, and became stuck  in the mud on the opposite bank. Fortunately, there was a Land Rover 0n hand to tow him up. The second van driver would not attempt the crossing so all our furniture was deposited on to the side of the road. Our new neighbour’s son, Stephen Mohammed, forded the river with his big dumper truck and relayed the furniture to the house.

Meanwhile, the larger van had to return to Guajar Alto to collect one more load, and by the time it had returned, it was 2100; that meant we were unloading furniture onto the dumper in pitch darkness.

On the following Monday, Rufi, an intrepid Spanish lorry driver, braved the river with the first load of building materials. Other builder’s merchants would not attempt the crossing. Once again, Stephen, who is also helping with the building work, assisted  with his dumper. It was a beautiful day and we were able to enjoy the views from our land.

Rufi delivering materials

Stephen and his dumper

View from our land

Our new cortijo

Sorry we have been out of contact for so long but we have only just got back on line and we have been extremely busy. First with moving house and now with organising building work.

Our new home is Cortijo de los Ortices. It is located 6km north of Huétor Tájar and 15 minutes from Loja. We have 26,000 sq. metres of land and the Rio Milanos forms our bottom boundary. Most of the land is given over to olives but we have a large, flat meadow by the river which has not been cultivated. We will start by planting a variety of fruit trees here. The main house, which has 3 double bedrooms, requires just cosmetic work. There is a walled patio next to the house across from which are various buildings in need of renovation and which is our building project.

Here is a photo of the house taken just before we moved in.

Our House is Sold

We are pleased to confirm that our house in Guajar Alto has been sold. Next month we will be moving but watch this space as we will continue this blog and tell you about our new adventure and our next Country House in Spain.

Today’s photos – 24th October

It’s been a beautiful day today so here are a few more photos. The main photo is of the house from below. Our house is the highest in the picture just to the left of centre and all the woodland below it belongs to the property.

Because the house is approved by the Junta de Andalucia and the area is rustic nobody may build another house within 200 metres of it. The other two photos are of our mountains, El Fuerte and Giralda. The photo of Giralda is taken from our terrace above the vegetable garden and the photo of El Fuerte from by our main gate.

If you are interested in the property please contact us on info@guajar.com or Tel: 00 34 958 069071

Today’s photos

We took these photos this morning as we thought the house looked so pretty with the cosmos daisies in flower at the entrance to the terrace. The first photo shows the end of the drive with cactus rock garden on the left and the garage on the right. The vegetable garden is below the house. In the second, closer photo one of the cats, Perkins, obligingly posed.

Enquiries for the property should be sent to info@guajar.com or Tel: 00 34 958 069071

View of the house

This photo gives a good idea of the location of our house. The woods and land below belong to the property. The olive groves, hidden from view, are above the house. The nearest inhabited property is about 300 metres away.

For more information scroll down the page to details of our property.

Vegetable Garden

September rains have been very welcome as now is the time to replant the vegetable garden with winter produce.

For more information on what to plant and sow this month see today’s post on

www.guajar.blogspot.com

Olives

Our olives have done well this year and we are now picking some for preserving. In a month’s time, when they turn black and soften they will be ready for oil.

For details on how to preserve olives see today’s blog on

www.guajar.blogspot.com

Harvesting grapes

Today we have been harvesting the grapes to make our annual vino de tierra

We follow the traditional process of making wine up here. First, we lay out the bunches of grapes in the sun for a few days in order to concentrate the sweetness and hence the alcohol content. Then we crush the grapes before putting them through a manual press. We simply pour the juice into oak barrels and leave it to ferment. After about 40 days the liquid in the barrel stops making a noise, indicating that it is ready to drink.

Details of our property

FOR SALE only 295,000 euros. Country house in Granada, Southern Spain

House and pool

Pool

Pool

Terrace

Terrace

Terrace

Veg garden

Drive with vines

Olive grove

Olive grove

Olive grove

Main gate

Living room

dining and living area

Kitchen

Bedroom

Bedroom

A superb country house with private swimming pool set in 32,000 sq. metres of olive groves and woodland just 5 minutes from the village of Guajar Alto and 30 minutes from the coast at Motril and Salobreña.

With breathtaking panoramic views of the mountains, valley and village from its surrounding terraces this is probably the finest country house in Guajar Alto.

The accommodation comprises lounge with large fireplace, kitchen/diner with living area and patio doors to terrace and BBQ area, 2 bedrooms including one very large double with patio doors to the pool area, bathroom with jacuzzi bath, shower room and separate utilty/washroom.

The living area by the dining area could be partitioned to make a 3rd double bedroom. The largest bedroom could also be partitioned to create 2 smaller double bedrooms.

The house is surrounded by a terrace with large covered porch, BBQ/dining area and swimming pool.

The house is aprroached by its own, gated private drive at the end of which

is a large garage/storeroom.

The house is set in a very large terrace. Patio doors from the dining room open on to the area of terrace which looks down over the village. Here there is a BBQ area, shaded sitting area under an oak tree, sunny sitting area with great views and a small flower and herb garden.

At the front of the house is a large tiled porch providing a shaded sitting and dining area. Part of this could be closed in to create more living area in the house. The other side of the house is the swimming pool with plenty of space for sunbeds and tables. The house is not overlooked by any other buildings so you can swim without a cozzy and sunbathe a natural.

Above the house is a large olive grove which yielded 1,800 kilos this year. There are also vines along the drive and a few other fruit and almond trees.

Below the house is a vegetable garden providing produce for the kitchen all the year around.

At the top corner of the land is an old ruin and quarry. The ruin was once used as a corral for animals.

Below the house running down to the village is a large area of woodland and a flat terrace of land which is ideal for keeping animals or planting out with fruit trees. The land is suitable for keeping a few horses or donkeys.

The house is approved as a vivienda unafamiliar (family house) by the Junta de Andalucia.

House is 173 sq. metres including porch and the garage is 30 sq.metres.

Please contact us at info@guajar.com, info@margaretmerry.com or telephone 00 34 958 069071.